Adam prepares for rat battle

Hello Fall City Rat Hunter from Monroe Georgia.

I am typing this letter with the irritating sound that has been waking me up each Sunday morning that I have tried to sleep in for the last 6 weeks. I am certain that I have a squirrel in my attic.

I have some experience with the critters due to a past situation in college. I rented a room in an old house in Athens only to discover that the loft where my fiance and I slept, which was within arms length of the ceiling, had some unwelcome nightly visitors. They were so close, it sounded like they were in bed with us. And they were feisty! They held nightly reenactments of the World Wrestling Federation's greatest bouts. It got so bad that my girl would no longer sleep at my place. But I was lucky. I had property management who could handle the situation for me. This time I don't have that luxury.

About a week after I noticed the problem, I went to the local Wal-Mart to stock up on some battle supplies. I figured I would start with chemical warfare at first. D-Con rodent poison and moth balls. If not successful, I could move on to Napalm and Agent Orange. I placed the D-Con in the corners of the attic over my bedroom where the noise is coming from, and scattered the moth balls in the areas where I could not reach. I got like a one pound box of moth balls.

On a side note here - I have never used moth balls in my life. The only experience I have had with them is the smell at my grandfather's house when I would go to visit. Being a man, I felt no need to read the package instructions, and proceeded to shake the entire contents of the box into the blown insulation in the deep corners of the trey ceiling over my bedroom. BIG MISTAKE. The immediate smell in the attic made my eyes water, and I quickly evacuated the attic. By the next morning, my entire house smelled like the geriatric wing of your local nursing home. It was staggering.

A month and much air sanitizer, new filters for the air purifier and some of those air fresheners that you hang on your AC filters later, and the smell is now down to a tolerable level. Unfortunately, with the absence of the smell has come the return of my friend in the attic. I just woke up for the second weekend (I only notice him on Sundays because I am gone before sunrise the other days of the week) to the scratching sound in the attic. OH, IT'S ON NOW!!!

Doing a web search, I have found the contents of your page very helpful. And to think I was considering accepting my defeat and contracting this kill out to a local mercenary in the varmint control sector! After church this morning (may God have mercy on this rodent's soul), I am preparing for battle. I think the Peanut Butter rat trap trick will be my first attempt.

I will try to get some pictures for you, and keep you updated on the status of the battle with my furry insurgent.

Godspeed,
Southern Squirrel Sniper


The Fall City Rat Hunter Replies:
Kill em and grill em - send pictures if you get em